The Peninsula Oilers picked up the first win of the season in a classic pitchers battle on the road against the Anchorage Glacier Pilots.
Oilers starting pitcher Eddie Leon (Marshall) started the game hot, retiring the first three batters he saw in order. The Pilots starter, Tyler Stewert, responded with a quick inning of his own, facing the minimum and earning two strikeouts to start his day.
Leon and Stewert battled back and forth, keeping both offenses quiet until the fourth inning when Oilers Max Roffwarg (Swarthmore) and Cole Dawson (Arkansas Tech) poked singles to start the inning. On a steal attempt to second base, Dawson would be thrown out at second, and no advance from Waffwarg at third would leave a runner on third and one out. This would set up Elijah Vogelsong-Lewis (Marshall) to smoke an RBI double down the right-field line to score the first run of the ball game.
Leon would continue to make quick work of Pilots hitters going five innings, allowing no hits, no runs, one walk, and three strikeouts on the day. Colby Reynolds (Johnson) took over in the sixth, and after a quick first inning, the Oilers faced their first real trouble of the night. The Pilots had the bases loaded with nobody out, and it looked as though the one-nothing lead wouldn’t last long. Reynolds, however, had other ideas. The righty dug deep and struck out three consecutive batters to strand the bases loaded and end the inning with no harm done.
Tommy Beam and Reynolds continued the pitcher’s duel, both shutting down the offensive game, leaving the game at 1-0 headed into the ninth inning, where the Oilers were hungry for insurance. A triple for Vogelsong-Lewis to start the inning provided the Oilers with real hope of tacking on at least one run of insurance. After a Colin Robson (Rice) strikeout, Ty Thomas (Mt SAC) was hit in the back, putting runners on the corners with only one out. Designated hitter Brock Worthgen (California Baptist) would follow the hit by a pitch by striking out, leaving the Oiler’s fate in right fielder Aidan Sullivan’s (Swarthmore) hands. Sullivan rose to the occasion, recording an RBI double that plated two runs and gave the Oilers a 3-0 lead heading to the bottom of the ninth.
The Pilots would strike back with a run in the bottom of the ninth, making it 3-1, before closer Cameron Tepper (California Baptist) settled in and shut down the Pilots’ offense to hand the Oilers their first win of the season.
Oilers starter Eddie Leon got the win for the Oilers, while relief Pilots pitcher Tyler Stewart was dealt the loss for the Pilots.
The Oilers (1-2) will face the Mat Su Miners (3-1) on Thursday for a 6 p.m. game. Catch all the action on KSRM 920 AM, 92.5 FM, and radiokenai.com.
